Introducing a New CodeHS AP CS A Course
By Alex Eacker, CodeHS Curriculum Developer
CodeHS is pleased to announce that we will be launching a new AP CS A course this fall!
Based on teacher feedback, and to better align our curriculum to the AP Exam, we are making substantial changes to our existing AP CS A course.
Some of those changes include:
Main Method
We are developing a new version of our AP CS A course that exclusively uses the Java Main Method. Instead of the CodeHS Java Console that we use in our existing CS A course, all of the exercises in the new AP CS A course will exclusively use the Java Main Method. We hope that this change will better allow teachers and students to use their code in other popular IDE’s, and emulate a more professional programming environment. We will continue to update and support our AP CS A (Mocha) course that uses the CodeHS Java Console.
Additional Practice and Instruction
For most of our existing AP CS A modules, we will be substantially expanding the number of activities and lessons available to help students develop a deeper understanding of important topics such as:
- ArrayLists
- 2D Arrays
- Recursion
- Objects and Classes
Additional Modules
In addition to increasing the depth of study, we will also be adding lessons on the Ethics of Computing and its Social Impact. These lessons will encourage students to explore the importance of Computer Science in the context of the larger world, and how the programs they create can influence the world in a myriad of ways.
AP CS A Labs
We have been making improvements that allow students to use graphics in the CodeHS code editor. These changes have allowed us to incorporate the recommended College Board AP CS A labs into our curriculum.
All three of the AP CS A College Board Labs will be included in the AP CS A course, as well as a stand alone course that students can complete for their lab requirements. These labs may be used to supplement the existing CodeHS AP CS A labs such as Battleship and Rock, Paper, Scissors.
We will continue to support and update the existing AP CS A (Mocha) course, for those teachers interested in using the original version.
We hope that all of these changes help improve student preparation for the AP Exam, and prove to make the course engaging, informative, and real-world applicable. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to make improvements!
Questions?
Email the CodeHS team at hello@codehs.com.
